NSAC | UFC Betting Sites - The Best MMA Online Bookies

Nick Diaz Continues Quixotic Legal Battle Against Nevada Athletic Commission: Requests Judicial Review From Court

(As you can clearly see, there’s no way I could have smoked any weed before UFC 143 because I had not picked even a single nugget yet. I rest my case.)

Since he tested positive for marijuana metabolites after his UFC 143 loss to Carlos Condit and was suspended for a year and fined nearly $80,000 by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC), Nick Diaz has fought the punishment in just about every place he could, and continued Wednesday by filing a Memorandum of Points and Authorities to support his petition for judicial review. So far, Diaz and his high-profile legal defense team have struck out in appealing to the Nevada State Attorney General and the NSAC itself in a hearing.

The NSAC has thirty days to respond and after that a judge will hear Diaz’ petition. Luke Thomas and MMA Fighting spoke with a member of Diaz’ legal team:

The Commission needs to understand that it cannot act with impunity in the exercise of its authority…In Diaz’s opinion, while fighters must respect the lawful authority of state athletic commissions, they should not accept unjust and unlawful disciplinary action. Further, Diaz finds it bizarre that the Commission is vigorously policing legal marijuana use outside competition while at the same time endorsing and sanctioning the use of steroids and testosterone — which has a direct effect on fighters and their opponents in competition. The Commission needs to refocus itself on protecting fighters and the fairness of the combat sports they regulate. Diaz believes this legal proceeding may provide the Commission a helpful push in the right direction, for the benefit of all fighters and the reputation of the sport itself.

Diaz’s petition has some interesting and seemingly compelling parts to it, including his lawyers’ contention that marijuana metabolites are not, in fact, banned substances. But they also continue to stretch out some arguments.

(As you can clearly see, there’s no way I could have smoked any weed before UFC 143 because I had not picked even a single nugget yet. I rest my case.)

The NSAC has thirty days to respond and after that a judge will hear Diaz’ petition. Luke Thomas and MMA Fighting spoke with a member of Diaz’ legal team:

The Commission needs to understand that it cannot act with impunity in the exercise of its authority…In Diaz’s opinion, while fighters must respect the lawful authority of state athletic commissions, they should not accept unjust and unlawful disciplinary action. Further, Diaz finds it bizarre that the Commission is vigorously policing legal marijuana use outside competition while at the same time endorsing and sanctioning the use of steroids and testosterone — which has a direct effect on fighters and their opponents in competition. The Commission needs to refocus itself on protecting fighters and the fairness of the combat sports they regulate. Diaz believes this legal proceeding may provide the Commission a helpful push in the right direction, for the benefit of all fighters and the reputation of the sport itself.

In what way does the NSAC “endorse and sanction,” the use of steroids? It is true that the commission has recently begun to issue therapeutic use exemptions (TUE) for testosterone replacement therapy to ~~every single~~ some fighters who have applied for them. They could theoretically issue some for marijuana use to those, like Diaz, who are legally allowed to use it in their home state of California to help with various ailments.

The thing is, NSAC Executive Director Keith Kizer has said that Diaz has never applied for a TUE for Marijuana. If part of Diaz’s argument is that he has a legal right to use marijuana out of competition and that he should have the same right to use as those who have been granted TUE’s, he probably should have applied for one at some point. Then again, we are talking about a man who once stated that he couldn’t move out of his shitty neighborhood because he didn’t major in buying a house during his time at Stockton U, which I can only imagine is run like Harvard post Method Man and Redman’s arrival.

Not that Diaz would have a clear path if he actually did apply. There’s no reason to believe that the NSAC would grant him their first exemption ever for marijuana, and there are not really guidelines for permissible amounts of THC or metabolites the way there are for testosterone.

In any case, at least Diaz is clearly not retired and obviously wants to get back to fighting as soon as possible (Ed note: Yeah, until he loses again). We’ll keep you posted on developments with this story as they are made available. To check out Diaz’ full petition to the court, click here.

– Elias Cepeda

[Exclusive] Muhammed ‘King Mo’ Lawal Discusses Controversies, Bellator & Pro Wrestling

(Mo wrote down all of his answers for this interview to prove, once more, to the Nevada State Athletic Commission that he can read and write in English.)

By Elias Cepeda

Sometimes it’s hard to tell whether Muhammed Lawal is truly as carefree as he sounds or if “King Mo” just doesn’t want us to see him sweat. The former All-American wrestler and current MMA light heavyweight has been embattled recently.

After exploding onto the international fight scene in 2008 Lawal suffered a violent loss, his first, to Rafael Cavalcante in 2010. In 2011 and early 2012 he got back on the winning track, stringing together two-straight but then Lawal had his win over Lorenz Larkin overturned after he failed a post-fight drug test.

A subsequent hearing, suspension, twitter outburst where he called a Nevada State Athletic Commissioner a “bitch,” and firing from Strikeforce followed. Oh yeah, Lawal also nearly died after a staph infection.

When we ask Lawal how he’s managed to stay focused and sane throughout it all he says, “It wasn’t that big of a deal.”

Really?

“All I care about is providing for my family,” he tells CagePotato. “And MMA is a small part of what I do to make a living.”

It certainly is about to become just one of two professional athletic careers that Lawal uses to make ends meet. Since being released by Strikeforce, Lawal has signed with Bellator and Total Nonstop Action wrestling. The idea is for him to simultaneously and regularly take part in professional wrestling and pro MMA.

(Mo wrote down all of his answers for this interview to prove, once more, to the Nevada State Athletic Commission that he can read and write in English.)

By Elias Cepeda

When we ask Lawal how he’s managed to stay focused and sane throughout it all he says, “It wasn’t that big of a deal.”

Really?

“All I care about is providing for my family,” he tells CagePotato. “And MMA is a small part of what I do to make a living.”

Lawal has two jobs now and his health back so it might be easier for him to overlook past troubles now but he also says he has no regrets.

“No, not really,” he answers bluntly when asked if he has any regrets with regards to his failed drug test and publicly insulting an athletic commissioner.

NSAC commissioner Pat Lundvall was direct and terse in questioning Lawal during the hearing over his failed drug test where he was ultimately suspended. At one point, Lundvall asked Lawal if he could read English.

It is a line of questioning that the commissioner had used in past hearing with other fighters, as she seemed to attempt to make a larger point about athletes taking responsibility for knowing what they ingest and what treatments they receive.

The college-educated Lawal, however, did not take kindly to being sarcastically asked if he could read and he took to twitter calling Lundvall a “racist bitch.”

Lawal is unrepentant and says he believes others can relate to why he had his outburst. “I said how I felt at the time,” Lawal explains.

“Think about if you were asked a similar thing, talked to in a similar way, what would you have felt? I just said what I felt at the time.”

Lawal hasn’t fought since January but his next training camp, of sorts, won’t prepare him for MMA. “King Mo” says that this month he will begin training to become a professional wrestler in the Ohio Valley Wrestling farm system.

Lawal says that he plans to take part in pro wrestling and MMA competition simultaneously and is not worried about suffering too many injuries or having his integrity as a competitive athlete called into question. He also just loves pro wrestling.

“I always loved to watch,” he says. “[Strikeforce heavyweight champion] Daniel Cormier and I used to warm up together by playing around and doing pro wrestling moves on each other.

As for the grind that professional wrestlers go through and the toll it takes on their bodies, Lawal doesn’t seem concerned. “I get injured more in training for fighting than anything. For me it makes no difference,” he maintains.

“Injuries are a part of being an athlete.”

Lawal also says that he won’t be any less of a serious competitor in MMA just because he will be taking part in scripted contests as a pro wrestler.

“In terms of credibility, a big part of pro wrestling is acting. If Denzel Washington plays a crooked cop in a movie, does it affect his credibility as a law-abiding citizen in real life?” he asks rhetorically.

“Pro wrestling is acting. It has a huge amount of athleticism in it with high flying stuff and the rest, but it is acting and people understand that.”

In fact, it’s his competitive ability to learn fast that Lawal says gives him confidence he will succeed in pro wrestling. “I always do and will do whatever I can to jump into it as quickly as possible. I study combat. I know more about wrestling, I know more about MMA and I know more about boxing than people would probably think,” he says.

“I love combat and study it. I’ll study professional wrestling in the same way and I know I’ll learn it.

Lawal says he has asked former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett, who also wrestled professionally for years in Japan, for advice. “He just told me to learn as much as I can,” Mo tells.

There’s no way someone who became a champion in college and a top international competitor in wrestling, to say nothing of becoming a major organization champion in MMA, the way Lawal has can be as indifferent as he sounds sometimes. Maybe the light heavyweight has no regrets about mistakes and perhaps he considers MMA to just be a “small part,” of his life.

Lawal still has goals, though. “I want to win the Bellator belt and I want to have some heavyweight super fights,” he says.

“In pro wrestling and fighting, I just want to always excite and entertain fans.”

NSAC Head Keith Kizer is not Amused by Anderson Silva’s Antics

Upon seeing Anderson Silva’s weigh-in shoulder strike, Keith Kizer had a Dana White moment.

Even though it doesn’t appear that Anderson Silva will be punished for striking Chael Sonnen with his shoulder at the UFC 148 weigh-in, Nevada State Athletic Commission Head Keith Kizer made it clear that he is very disappointed with the UFC middleweight champion. In fact, he’s so disappointed that he told “The Spider” that another such incident would get him banned from competing in Nevada. According to MMAJunkie.com, these were Kizer’s exact words to Anderson Silva:

“Look, if you ever, despite your previous record with us as a good licensee, if you ever do anything like this again, that’s it for you in Nevada. You’ll be fighting your fights elsewhere.”

So if the NSAC is so upset with Silva, then why isn’t he getting fined for his actions? Ironically – or perhaps fittingly – it was Chael Sonnen playing The Voice of Reason.

Upon seeing Anderson Silva’s weigh-in shoulder strike, Keith Kizer had a Dana White moment.

“Look, if you ever, despite your previous record with us as a good licensee, if you ever do anything like this again, that’s it for you in Nevada. You’ll be fighting your fights elsewhere.”

So if the NSAC is so upset with Silva, then why isn’t he getting fined for his actions? Ironically – or perhaps fittingly – it was Chael Sonnen playing The Voice of Reason.

When Keith Kizer met with Chael Sonnen to discuss the incident, Chael was “very forgiving” towards the champion, and didn’t call for any type of serious disciplinary action. According to Kizer, the most that Chael Sonnen suggested was a small fine, but made it clear that he personally wouldn’t even fine Anderson for the incident.

Keith Kizer and NSAC chairman Raymond “Skip” Avansino, who had the final authority in what actions would be taken against Anderson Silva, had a far different encounter with Anderson Silva. While Sonnen was reasonable, Silva flat-out refused to acknowledge that his actions were uncalled for when he was initially confronted about the incident. As Kizer recalls:

“Anderson had some very lame excuse initially about, ‘Oh, well, Chael put his head down at the beginning of that,’” Kizer recounted. “I’m like, ‘C’mon, that’s silly.’ And then he said, ‘Well, I’m upset about what he said about my wife.’ I said, ‘Look, I understand that, but that’s not an excuse for doing what you did. It’s inexcusable what you did.’

Keith Kizer has also addressed how Anderson Silva rubbed Vaseline off of his face and onto his body before the fight. While Kizer admits that he’s noticed Anderson Silva do that before, he pointed out that on Saturday night, it was “more blatant that we expected.” He pointed out that UFC CEO Lorenzo Fertitta also noticed the incident on Saturday night, and praised referee Yves Lavigne for being quick to wipe Silva off before the fight.

So, does this tarnish your view of Anderson Silva at all? Is he alone in this, or do you think he just managed to get caught? And how serious do you think Keith Kizer actually is about banning the UFC’s most dominant champion? Let the debate resume. Keep it clean – No Vaseline, no grabbing your keyboards. This isn’t a cage fight, you guys.

Nevada Attorney General Not Impressed by Nick Diaz’s NSAC Lawsuit

(Photo courtesy of NBC Sports)

Remember when Nick Diaz‘s legal team filed suit last week, claiming that the Nevada State Athletic Commission had acted improperly in handling his failed drug test and ensuing proceedings, and that they now no longer have jurisdiction over their client’s case? Well, the state of Nevada disagrees. After Diaz’s lawyer Ross C. Goodman referenced a “summary suspension” in their paperwork last week, Nevada’s Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto wrote Goodman to explain that, in legal terms, he doesn’t know what he’s talking ’bout. MMA Fighting has the report:

“‘No Notice of Summary Suspension was ever served on your client,’ Masto wrote. ‘In this matter, Mr. Diaz was properly served with a Notice of Hearing on Temporary Suspension and he failed to appear at the hearing. The Commission temporarily suspended Mr. Diaz’s license at the hearing. Neither Mr. Diaz nor you objected in any manner to the temporary suspension.’“

(Photo courtesy of NBC Sports)

“The letter effectively indicates that because Diaz was not given a ‘summary suspension,’ his case does not fall under Nevada code NRS 233B.127, which requires a hearing within 45 days. A separate code, NRS 467.117, indicates that the commission can ‘continue the suspension until it makes a final determination of any disciplinary action to be taken against the licensee or holder of the permit’.”

The letter also indicates that the NSAC delay in scheduling Diaz’s hearing was partially his fault, caused while waiting for him to produce his medical marijuana card.

“I’ve waited for more than a month for the card,” Masto wrote.

So, Diaz’s team is saying that Nevada lost their chance at deciding the fighter’s fate because they have not held a hearing within 45 days, in violation of Nevada code NRS 233B.127, which dictates what happens under summary suspension. But that’s not even an applicable argument, according to the Nevada Attorney General. In summation, Diaz is saying to the NSAC “you can’t tell me what to do!”, and the state of Nevada is saying, “yes we can.”

Time will tell which side the circuit court that Diaz filed suit in will take. The court will hear Diaz’s motion for an injunction against the NSAC’s suspension (that the NSAC says doesn’t exist), on May 14th.

Nick Diaz Sues Nevada State Athletic Commission, Says He’s Ready to Fight Immediately

(Come at me, NSAC!)

UFC welterweight contender Nick Diaz has sued the Nevada State Athletic Commission for allegedly violating his right to due process and for alleged violations of statutory law. Diaz’s suit petitions the court to stay the summary suspension given to Diaz by the NSAC and to prohibit the NSAC from going forward with additional disciplinary proceedings.

And, oh yeah, Diaz says he is ready to fight “immediately,” should the court rule in his favor, in a sworn affidavit released by his attorney. “On February 7th, 2012, the UFC’s President publicly announced that Mr. Condit agreed to an immediate rematch against me. It is my understanding that the winner of that rematch will be offered a contest against Georges St-Pierre, the current UFC welterweight champion,” Diaz said.

Top 10 beard-for-beard MMA reporter Luke Thomas has more details, many of which will fly over your head if you’re not a law student:

(Come at me, NSAC!)

Top 10 beard-for-beard MMA reporter Luke Thomas has more details, many of which will fly over your head if you’re not a law student:

“Diaz is arguing the NSAC is in violation of two statutory codes. First, statutory code NRS 233B, requires the commission to determine the outcome through proceedings related to the order of a summary suspension within 45 days of the date of the suspension.

Diaz and his lawyers argue this term has passed without any date set for a hearing. ‘Diaz’s license has, in effect, been suspended indefinitely, says the lawsuit, ‘In the absence of any adverse findings having been made against him by the NSAC.’

‘Under NRS 233B.127, which applies to all revocations, suspensions, annulments and withdrawals of licenses (including licenses issued by the NSAC), [p]roceedings relating to the order of summary suspension must be instituted and determined within 45 days after the date of the [suspension] unless the agency and the licensee mutually agree in writing to a longer period.’

The lawsuit claims Diaz and his lawyers made repeated attempts to reach the NSAC to obtain a formal hearing to finally adjudicate the NSAC’s complaint without any response from Executive Director of the NSAC Keith Kizer.

Diaz’s complaint also cites breach of statute NRS 467.117, which requires that a ‘temporary suspension may be made only where the action is necessary to protect the public welfare’. In other words, Diaz’s temporary suspension is unlawful because no basis has been established that demonstrates suspending Diaz was done as a matter of preserving public health.

Citing the alleged violation of these two statutes by the NSAC, Diaz’s complaint asks the court to enjoin NSAC from proceeding with any further punitive proceedings because ‘the NSAC has lost statutory jurisdiction to proceed with the complaint’.”

Diaz’ motion for injunction against the NSAC is scheduled to be heard by the court on May 14th. This case might prove to be fascinating for what it is avoiding.

Diaz is attempting to circumvent the NSAC altogether by claiming that they no longer have jurisdiction in his career, and going straight to the courts and calling into question the disciplinary process of the world’s most influential athletic commission. Diaz is also attempting to avoid the reason for his suspension by the NSAC, a post-fight drug test in which he tested positive for marijuana metabolites.

Diaz isn’t asking the courts to render judgement on the test, but rather, he appears to be attempting to get out of his suspension on the technicality that the NSAC made mistakes in their process of handling his case. Diaz’ entire complaint is available here and the motion for preliminary injunction, including his sworn affidavit can be read here.

What do you say, nation? Is Nick violating Stockton rules by doing the procedural version of point-fighting, or is he holding up the 209 proper by giving the NSAC the middle finger?

And when did Diaz get so good at the public relations game? Just the other day he had his brother Nate saying that he wasn’t interested in fighting, but now he’s filed legal papers saying he is ready to fight again immediately. That’s some high-level misdirection and strategic demurring. Or something.

– Elias Cepeda

Nick Diaz Sues the NSAC, Seems More Interested in Fighting Today Than Yesterday

Yesterday afternoon, I wrote this story about Nick Diaz not being all that interested in fighting any more. As it turns out, Diaz was, in fact, interested in fighting. And he wants to fight right now. Which is why Diaz and his lawyer filed a land…